Redbark No Chief
by Shuna
Summary: The story of Redbark, who was made chief after Two-Spear killed Kahvi and his search for answers about his mother's trickery. AU
1. The Star's  Own Time

AN: This is an ElfQuest story I've had in my mind ever since I read the Kahvi series, and I finally have managed to write the first chapter of it. It will be chaptered fic, and updates will come as fast as my muse and computer allows me. So does the length of the chapters.

In this fanfiction, Redbark is the son of Graywolf and Willowgreen.

Disclaimer: ElfQuest, its logos, characters, situations, all related indicia, and their distinctive likenesses are trademarks of Warp Graphics, Inc. All rights reserved

**The Star's Own Time**

_**May you live forever, my cub**_

Now that he knew the meaning behind those words, he couldn't help to feel a shudder crawl up his spine. The idea of living forever, much like the elves the tribe told about, this... Rellah who looked down upon them because of their kinship with the wolves.

But it was true. He was like her. Not in spirit, but in body. The blood he had shared with his wolfriend, his dear Fox Tail... it was gone. Cleansed like... no. There was no comparison to this, no other chief had stood face to face with such a crisis. And he had failed to save his tribe from them. He had even unleashed it on them. The ones he was supposed to protect at all times, by once again allowing his mother to use her powers once more.

It was his first order as a chief. As long as Redbark had known, Two-Spear had not allowed any healing. Willowgreen had not always listened to her chief and lifemate. And every time she defied, Two-Spear had turned his rage towards her. After the old Chief dying, that was the first change Redbark brought with him.

But the time being banned from what the blond healer was born to do had obviously not been kind on the healer. Truly, Willowgreen had become mad during the time. Or maybe it was because of the loss of her second mate?

Redbark did not know. Only thing he knew was what one of his elders, Icetooth had told him when the young chief awoke from his slumber. They no longer shared blood with their four legged friends. All of them were affected by the news. Many mourned the kinship they had with their wolves. Others were silent. And they all looked at Redbark, their eyes all holding the silent plea, hoping that their chief could fix this tragedy.

And the chief in question found himself wishing to search after his mother, who had disappeared with their blood.


	2. Hunting and Discoveries

**Hunting and discoveries**

Fox Tail moved easily through the thick forest. Her nose had never been the sharpest of the pack, something Redbark had to compensate with his swift arrows and eyesight. They were both hunting alone today, something the dirt haired elf had done intentionally. He tried to cut their lone hunts as often as possible, knowing very well that some of the elders in the tribe was beginning to look at this habit with alarm. Others shrugged it off, claiming that it was true to their former chief's legacy.

But he also found himself longing the solitude which was to keep riding for hours alone. Now that he was chief, the responsibilities were many. He was glad that there was no white cold in the air yet, nor was there any sign in the air of the season of dying leaves. There was still enough time to gather supplies. Though it was not as unkind as it had been in other area's areas they had denned, Redbark wanted to be as well prepared as possible for the first white-cold he had as a chief.

Redbark lowered his head as they passed a tree with lower branches than the other trees they had encountered so far. Fox Tail halted, leaning closer to the ground. The elf swung his legs off the wolf, mimicking her movement. Sniffing slightly, a smile cracked his face. The smell was unmistakable. There was a deer, not far from here. And luckily for the hunter, the wind was blowing against him. His tongue ran over his lips. Deer had always been one of his favorite meals, dried or not. It was also a very practical animal to hunt. It made fine clothing and it was fairly easy to carry home if you had to.

The red furred wolf pushed him forward, almost making the chief fall flat on the ground. Turning toward her, he smiled before he began the same trotting as he had done in the past. He felt a little clumsier than the last time he had done so, mostly because he had been sitting on his wolf-friend too much lately. Deciding to remember to use his legs more often, he kept his pace, sometimes leaning down to be certain that he was on the right track, it was not long before he could finally set eyes on his prey.

It was a young buck, the antlers barely grown at all. Despite of this, it was alone, leading Redbark to assume that it was not long since it left its mother. The brown fur looked almost red in the late afternoon sun. It was not far, maybe only seven wolf leaps away from him. His hand reached slowly to the quiver on his back, trying as carefully as possible to not make a sound. Redbark could almost taste the warm meat between his teeth, and would rather not miss his meal today. The arrow was at the string, now. The deer kept eating grass, unaware that it was being watched. Lifting the bow, he pulled the string back.

Suddenly, the wolf started to growl. The deer's head shot up, staring right up at the bow. Then it darted away from the hunter, who did not bother to take up the flight. "What is it?" He asked Fox Tail, who stood stiff. But he understood as soon as he laid eyes on the hairs on Fox Tail's neck.

There were humans nearby, most likely in the same direction as the source of the wind. Frowning, he put the arrow back. All hunger was gone from his mind. Then he put the bow back on him, and swung his legs over Fox Tail's back. "Take me there," he told the wolf.

Fox Tail did as she was told, was but was sure to snort, showing that she was not eager to do so. Alone that was. She had no problem with it when they had chased and killed them in the past. However, there had always been at least two elves and wolves with them when they did so. Being alone when going after humans was something neither Fox Tail or Redbark did if they could help it. Two-Spear had never liked that his so called successor preferred to strike humans in a group instead of plunging himself into battles. But then again, the previous leader was hard to please. Something every member of the tribe had expirienced, one way or another.

"We will not kill them today, Fox Tail," the elf explained to her. "We will only watch how many there are." He hoped that it was only four or less. It was unlikely, but he kept the hope up as the pair silently went through the forest.

The branches of the trees were a little higher in the southern part of the forest compared to the north east, where the tribe was currently denning. Here, the trees would gradually stretch up toward the sky, and there was more of those trees which did not have leaves, but long stingy green needles. Hence, it always seemed darker here. What was good about it was that when the the needletrees lost their needles, it made a soft floor on the ground, making it easier to step quietly.

However, it also meant that the wolves' soft paws could be stung more easily.

Redbark slid off his wolfriend once more, letting her lead the way to the five fingers. He could not smell their unwashed stench yet, something which disturbed him. He had no problems scenting the deer, so why could he not smell the humans?

Some leaps later, the chief let out a relieved sigh. Now he could finally scent them, and their cooking fires. Fox Tail stopped when she reached a cliff which her elffriend had never seen before. Dropping himself to the grown, he edged as close to the edge as possible without exposing himself too much.

His lips were pressed into a firm line as his eyes rested on the humans down there. They had set up some strange bulbs made of wood and dirt, almost as if the group was trying to create small caves for themselves instead of sharing the caves with their family or tribe as the elves did. He could spot six humans, all of them female. There were more bulbs, so the young chief came quickly to the conclusion that there was more. There were no male humans there, the five fingers in general had a weird habit of only sending their men out when hunting. They were probably in other parts of the forest now.

Gritting his teeth in dismay, he scanned the rest of the environment of the five fingered beasts.

The cliff he was leaning on was very steep, and the fall was at least three times Two-Spear's height, if not more. As far as Redbark noticed, there were very few cracks to hold on to, if the humans below wanted to test their strength. The cliff was also long, so long that there was only one way out of it, and it was through a passage pointing toward South. It was a natural defense toward enemies, as long as they did not come from the cliffs. And it was unlikely that any bear or wolf would attack from there.

Elves however...

Nodding to himself, the elf quickly edged away from the cliff until he was certain that the humans could not see him. He got up from the forest floor, he quickly brushed dirt off his pants, which matched the fur of his wolfriend, before the two of them took off, running toward the caves his dear tribe lived in.


End file.
